Is it Possible to Cure Asperger or Recover From Autism?
Posted: Friday, January 09, 2009
by Joy De Vries
Asperger Advice
For high-functioning autistic individuals, such as those with Asperger's syndrome, like my son "recovery" is an upsetting concept because it implies they have something to recover from.
In our family we disagree on the recovery or cure concept when it comes to autism. Can children with Asperger improve their behavior to a certain degree? Yes I have experienced personally: that can happen, they can surprise you and behave in ways you never thought would be possible! However that does not mean they are 'recovered'. Research has shown 'abnormalities' on chromosomes # 11 and #16 in children and adults with autism. Somehow these two chromosomes differ from the ones us 'neuro-typicals' have. Can you truly recover from that? I don't think so. Still many parents out there are trying to find ways to have their children recover from Asperger or autism. I respect that search but for me personally, I would much rather spend my time and energy on finding ways to help my children deal with their autism and come to terms with it. That way, later on in life they can stand tall and say: yes I do have it, and that does not make me any less valuable than those who don't have it.
Let's take my oldest son, a typical 13 year old Asperger as an example:
So his brain works in a different way, the information he gets is processed differently in his head. So what? He is a very smart guy, with lots of humor and we laugh a lot. He is the most honest person I have ever met and I learned to love his bluntness. It's so pure to look at life the way he does. He works hard in school and gets high grades, he want to go to university. He is fun to be around with and always willing to help me with chores around the house. He likes to cook and help out vacuuming or mopping our floors. He has a paper round with little over a 100 papers that need to be delivered once a week, and he is out there rain or shine!
I don't want him to change. He is just great the way he is. Why are we all so afraid of some-one being different? What if he does not want the social interaction with his peers but prefers to stay home in his room and read encyclopedia's, study or play strategic games on his computer? So what! What is he is unable to relate to his peers and prefers the company of adults? So what! I agree with the fledgling neurodiversity movement. This is their point of view on recovering from autism:
The fledgling neurodiversity movement argues that autism is not a disorder-it's a unique way of thinking and viewing the world, and one that should be embraced, not "cured." To those on the spectrum, recovery sounds as if someone wants to mess with their brain wiring, rather than the side effects.
Both my sons are unique in many ways and I love them dearly. I have dedicated my time and energy to accept them for who they are. In the mean time I am trying to create more autism awareness around the world, and hope the world can become a better place for them to be in. That way people know I am not talking about the vegetable asparagus! Go to: http://www.Asperger-Advice.com to learn all there is to know about Asperger!
Joy de Vries has two sons age 13 and 9 diagnosed with Asperger, a form of autism. Together with Asperger's both boys also have ADHD and the youngest one has a touch of Tourette Syndrome. Life in their home can be a little hectic from time to time...
. Her mission is to educate people arround the world on the ins and outs of Asperger and other forms of autism by emphasizing the positive side of things! check out her Asperger website: www.Asperger-Advice.com
. Her mission is to educate people arround the world on the ins and outs of Asperger and other forms of autism by emphasizing the positive side of things! check out her Asperger website: www.Asperger-Advice.com Apart from being a mother of two she has a bachelor degree in nursing and teaching aswell as a masters degree in educational science. She is currently working part-time at a Dutch university as an educationlist, designing trainings and E-learnings for doctors and nurses.
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Top-level comments on this article: (4 total)Greata article. Sadly, I thik your title says it all. Your article and the information presented is appreciated and should be received well from the readers.
This article litterly made me smile ; I am 13 years old and my little brother has autism. I agree with everything you said about autism. You really opened my eyes! :)
I strongly disagree with your article. To make it worse is the fact that you are in contact regularly with so many in the medical field to influence them into complacency regarding the quest to remedy this ailment that should not have take place in the first place. Its like saying that its okay to be sick with asbestos poisoning and since you can live most of your live appearing normal its okay.
Personally, I have a son that was perfectly normal until he received a vaccine(s) somewhere between 2006 and Feb 2007. Beginning during that period he would vomit at the slightest provocation. Matter of fact you can just expect it as soon as he started playing.
Now I am not going to accept it from anyone that it was alright to screw up my son, nor will I stick my head in the ground and act like everything is fine. You may be fortunate in that your sons are doing well in school and that the only companionship that they should have is someone 20 years older than themselves. It is great that as a mother that you can be so understanding but I wish the same for him from the larger society.
As far as the recovery issue is concerned, much of the recovery movement is not promoting zapping children with radiation to cure them from their ills but instead employing changes in dietary intake and an increase awareness of the role nutrition plays in the health of an Autistic child. Yes, significant improvements are realized even if not full recovery, like coming back from the edge of oblivion.
I remember meeting a young father, who happens to be a nurse, at a recent Defeat Autism Now conference in Baltimore in April 2010. You could see the desperation to heal his son that was suffering as a result of his Autism. I can tell you now that since he was directed to an DAN doctor, used purified water, and introduced to products from Kirkman Labs, he has seen a fantastic improvement in his son.
Even your son's AHDH could be successfully addressed by obtaining his amino acid profile to identify the proteins he is deficient of. Vitamins and nutrient supplements would be customized for him by a compounding pharmacy to address his ADHD, hopefully resulting in marked improvements.
I have no fear that the Autism Recovery movement will continue because more and more kids are being affected, if you have seen the latest statistics. From my limited observations of the number of doctors that attended the DAN Conference, not as a continual education session, but because their kids and siblings are affected, I suspect we will only gather speed.
I would also like to thank all the work that Bernard Rimland, MD and the Autism Research Institute (Autism.com) has done in this field to give parents hope that our children will not have to accept a life that would minimize them.
This may sound odd, but having a child with Asperger and being married to one are two different things. Usually people marry a person with Asperger Syndrome and they don't realize it until everything starts falling apart. Then they find out and it quite a shock as it cannot be cured. Theory of mind, empathy, expression, ability to chat are all very important in a marriage and many Aspies do not have those things. The divorce rate is around 80%. I feel we need more education so that women do not get this surprise in their marriages. This woman is talking like a mother and that is fine but she is way oversimplifying things. Just my opinion.
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